Half-Life 2 (and episodes) Review

Review of Half-Life 2 (and episodes) powered by the Slant community.

Gordon Freeman didn’t choose the crowbar, the crowbar chose him! After the events of Half Life, Gordon Freeman,PHD in Physics and professional Box Pusher, gets whisked away by the G-Man to City 17, a city overtaken by an oppressive regime called the Combine. Join Gordon along with freedom fighter Alyx Vance to fight headcrabs and former co-workers in Half Life 2 (and Ep 1 & 2 but not 3).

Pros

Pro

Very moddable

Entire games have been made from Half Life (such as Counter Strike) and the tradition continues with it’s sequel! In fact there’s a game essentially about making your own things made from a modded Half Life 2 and that game is called Garry’s Mod.

Pro

Amazing character animation

When Half Life 2 came out it set the bar super high for character animation that still rivals some games today.

Pro

Guns are varied and interesting

Almost every gun is fun to shoot and is distinct. The crossbow is super awesome for it’s power and the gravity gun offers variety in puzzles and what you can shoot with. Want to hit someone with an explosive barrel? Pick it up and throw it with the gravity gun!

Pro

Commentaries

Hear from the creators about the making of Half Life 2 Ep1 and 2. Everything from level design to technical details are discussed. More developers need to use this.

Pro

Great Sci-Fi story

Aliens, portals to other dimensions, oppressive regimes, oh my! This game brings a great flavor of dystopian sci-fi as you fight part of the rebel cause to deliver justice with your Gravity Gun to the many species afflicted by the evil Combine. Also Half Life ties in somehow with the Portal series which makes it even more awesome.